White Fire and Green Ice LokixOC
by ALostWinchester
Summary: Post Thor II, She was a prisoner, he was a prisoner, but she's the only one in Asgard who knows it's not the Olfather that sits on the throne, and it can get lonely without anyone to play with...
1. Chapter 1

Loki watched her from his vantage point in the grand hall in which he projected an image of his father to the throne. Her head was bowed, so the king would never see her smirk, but Loki could. He could see beyond the embers at the ends of her long white hair, and he could almost make out embers glowing in her eyes behind their curtain. She wore brown rags that made her true form a mystery to him and cuffs and chains held her wrists. She was not of Asgard, or any place he knew of, and she had been imprisoned in the cells beside him during his captivity, yet he had never heard of her until now. She had escaped with the other prisoners when the Dark Elves attacked, and it was assumed she intended to kill upon her release, and so she stood before the throne now, to decide her fate.

"Do you know why you are here?"

"I chose to be." She replied, lifting her head now. She had the palest of skin Loki had seen, and he was the palest person he knew. It was lovely on her, and he was interested to know more of her existence but he was making the Olfather speak and he had to assume the Olfather knew what her crime had been.

"Indeed. When you were released from your prison, where did you go?"

"Outside. It was... dangerous." She lowered her head once again, and Loki could see the grin.

"Do you choose to return to your prison?"

She hesitated. Flames flickered to life from the embers of her hair. She lifted her head, squared her shoulders and nodded the affirmative.

"Take her away." The fake-Odin commanded, and she was lead away from the room. Loki followed, invisible to all, and sent the projection on the throne out of the chair, through the castle until it could disappear un-witnessed. He knew each 'safe-spot' well, Loki exerted no effort in imitating Odin's presence any longer.

Loki made a little effort now, creating a second impression of the two guards that flanked the new stranger and one of her as well. The guards continued forward, sure they still carried the weight of her chains in their hands, while she slowed, sure nothing had changed until she saw the impression of herself and the two real guards walk away. Her embers glowed more harshly, the speed of their flickering increasing. She said nothing and looked around for witnesses. There were none and as her image carried on, she was turned to a passage Loki had already travelled through. It led to Odin's chambers, as he had claimed that too for his own.

Loki looked out to Asgard from the balcony as she entered and the guards disintegrated, a green outline following their disappearance. She watched with wide eyes of shock and her hair frantically crackling. He turned after a pause and found her glowering at him with black eyes – the embers had gone from their colour but not from her hair.

"Now _that_ is a clever trick." He began, waiting for a response. She held his gaze darkly.

"Did you enjoy my trick?" he continued, his patience wearing, "Answer me!"

A ring of fire sprang forth from her, level with the ground, and orange flames touched everything in the room before changing to smoke and blending with the air. She was un-singed, but Loki had been shrouded with fire for a moment and steam rose from his shoulders.

"How dare you!" he began, cut short as she was suddenly immaterial, having changed to flames and ashes before his eyes and in a blink re-materialised before him. Her chains and shackles clanked to the ground. She was very close and he stumbled back. She didn't have to say, 'no, how dare you' at all; it was implied.

"What are you?" he growled, reining in the part of him pleasantly surprised by her naked form. She was flawless, pale all but for a triangle of darkness above the line of her legs, and for the pink ovals on her breasts.

"No one knows." She said factually. Her voice was sultry, deep but not masculine. She seemed completely unconcerned by her nakedness.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"I am fire, and not."

"Who are you?"

"Solvieg-Zora and you are Loki, and you are believed dead."

He stepped towards his bed and leaned casually on the post, recovering from his earlier surprise.

"And yet here I am."

"In the Olfather's chambers."

"How did you know that?"

"Is he dead?"

"I can't tell you that."

Her jaw clenched and she bowed her head in acceptance.

"You fooled the guards."

"I did, sadly I don't find it difficult."

"Why am I here?"

"In time," He walked closer to her, around her, taking her in as he did, "First answer me this; if you can break apart into little bits of fire, why would you remain bound in chains? Why would you choose prison?"

"Why would I reveal that to you: a man of treason and of tricks."

"Good point."

"Why am I here?"

"You interest me. You are new to me."

"How terribly simple." She smirked at the floor.

"How long have you been imprisoned?"

Her eyes searched the room without seeing the room. She answered in a whisper, "Seven years."

"What did you do?"

She looked up at him wryly, "I'm not as deserving of death as you, Odinson."

"Laufison. Actually."

Her eyes glittered with understanding – literally.

"How do you do that?" he asked, "With your eyes?"

"Can I go to my cell now?"

"Don't you prefer it in here?"

She looked suddenly uncomfortable. She audibly crackled and steam came from her eyes. It took a while before she turned to Loki again,

"You should be dead. You were imprisoned. You got out like the rest of the things in that vault and now you sleep in Odin's bed... It is you who fills the Olfather's throne."

"Bravo." He droned.

"And you were never his son."

"No." He clenched his jaw.

"Why take all of this?"

"It is what some would call my birthright."

"It must be nice, to know where you are from."

He frowned at that. She looked to the view from the balcony.

"Seven years is a long time to go without sunlight." Loki began, "I asked why you would prefer an empty cell to this room."

"I have to pay." She said darkly, her whole being seeming to illuminate ever so slightly.

"If you tell me your crimes I'll tell you mine."

"Are you... lonely, Laufison?" she asked, twisting to face him. From the angle he could see the slender curve of her neck and shoulders, the curve of her back into her backside and the swell of her breasts. He cleared his throat,

"I thought you might be." He said in a low register, "What is victory if you can't share it?"

"How do you know I won't turn against you?"

"That is an excellent point."

Loki suddenly appeared as Odin and called for his guards. Solvieg-Zora didn't struggle as she was taken to a cell and locked away.

It was the first time she had engaged in conversation with someone in so long that a hurricane of emotions made their way through her, turning the view in her cell into an orange and red sandstorm.


	2. Chapter 2

From Odin's journals Loki found Solveig-Zora. An anomaly, charged with the murder of several thousand people by fire. It gave no more details except that she was to spend one day in that cell per person dead, and that it was difficult to put a child in prison, especially when that child understood her crime.

Bored with the monotony of his solitude, he graced Solveig-Zora with his presence before her cell. She looked exactly as he remembered her, only more serene, and less naked. This was her comfort: the white, brightly lit walls and the impenetrable wall through which to view her. She lay on the ground, perfectly flat on her back and looked to him as he sat on the ledge of her confines.

"Why did you kill so many people, Solv-"

"Zora." She croaked, as though her voice was hoarse. "You can call me Zora, Loki."

He frowned and pressed his finger to his lips. She smiled and looked to her ceiling.

"Then what do I call you?"

"I do like being called a king."

"Not by me." She returned her gaze to him and her eyes danced with amber and light.

"No? You can't oppose a direct order from your king."

"But I can, and I would. No one tells me what to do, not even you."

"Yet here you are in a cell, captive."

"And there you are with exactly what you wanted, and still no one calls you king."

Loki smirked and walked away from the cell. He felt perpetually drawn to her and yet could not stand to be around her for long. As he left she closed her eyes and tried to burn away the curiosity that threatened to consume her. She had been a young woman when she was imprisoned but she had not been completely inexperienced. She had longed for years to be in contact with another soul but no one would speak to her or come near but the guards, and they were identical in armour each day. She grew tired of them and then Loki would insert herself into her vision and her thoughts would run rampant. That was the true torture of her captivity. The thought of what could have been and what she should not be able to reach. Yet there he was, pale, dark haired, powerful. She shuddered and the flames receded. She moved against a wall and balanced on her head until she passed out and fell.


	3. Chapter 3

The barrier was gone. At first she didn't believe it but a test, expelling fire from her palms, revealed it to be true. She stepped out and surveyed the length of the hall of cells. No one was a around and no one else was free. She knew of only one person who had reason to let her go, and travelled swiftly through the castle, hiding in candles as people passed until she reached the room Loki had taken her to.

"Oh good," he commented, struck again by her naked form, "You made it."

"You opened the cell."

"I did."

"Why?"

"To bring you here."

"How did you know I wouldn't walk out into Asgard?"

"Why didn't you?"

"To make sure it was you who opened the cell and no one else."

"Precisely."

She smiled, and looked around for somewhere to sit. Loki indicated a desk chair and she took it, sitting in it sidelong and perching her chin on her arm as it rested on the back of the chair. She watched him with intense dark eyes that only had ghosts of orange light pass through them.

"Have you ever seen an Asgardian celebration before?"

"No."

"Then come with me."

He began to walk and Zora remained where she sat, watching him become an Asgardian soldier before her eyes.

"It's interesting that you can do that." She commented.

"There are many interesting things I can do."

He carried on through the door, and it was only then Zora noticed she was, for all visual purposes, wearing armour too. She rose from the chair and walked the path he took at a brisk pace until she met with him.

"Why are you taking me with you?"

"I must keep a vigil on my projections."

"Then why take me?"

"There is nothing duller than attending a party and being alone."

"Still, why take me at all?"

"I've told you before, I find you interesting."

He couldn't see her behind his illusion, but tears fell from her eyes, becoming vapour as they fell against the heat of her cheeks. It was hard for her to hear that someone wanted to interact with her. She remained silent the rest of the journey, through the grand hallways to a more grand room, lined with tables and food. People danced and talked and ate beneath the Olfather's gaze. Zora followed Loki as he casually moved around the crowd, casting his projections from them to look like leaving soldiers, and shrouding them from view as they scaled a column for a bird's-eye view.

At the top, Zora stared below, taking in as many details as she could, should she never see anything like it again. Loki dropped the guises they wore to find she had wrapped a cloth, stolen from their journey, around herself. Loki passed her a napkin of food he had collected on their travels and she reached into her own pocket to produce a napkin of food too. He withdrew his napkin with a smirk,

"I forget you are a criminal."

"You're the first."

"Is that so?"

"I don't forget what you are either." She cautioned.

"And what do you perceive that to be?"

"A criminal of course."

"I disagree."

"Of course you do."

"Oh?"

"You're arrogant enough to believe what you have done is justified."

"And you believe it is not?"

"I believe... I believe all people with significant power are criminals. We can't help ourselves."

"What power do you think you possess?"

She smiled at the crowd below and Loki followed her gaze as a gasp came from below. Candle flames leaped impossibly high into the air, almost exposing them both where they perched. The flames parted from the candles, performing a spectacle of movement and light above the room. Warriors poised their fingertips above their weapons and when the flames dispersed, Loki saw to it for his projection of Odin to clap. The tension in the air eased and the party carried on. Zora held a hand over her giggling smile.

"That," Loki grinned despite his words, "could have been catastrophic for us both."

"For you. I could have left unnoticed quite well as they rained violence upon you."

"Then leave now, I tire of your stupidity."

She laughed as she dispersed into a gust of embers, floating quickly away, close to the ceiling so as not to be seen, and leaving behind the napkin of food and the cloth she had wrapped around herself. Loki looked at it in disgust. How could he hate someone so much and desire her company also? She spoke truths that lacked the proper perception of his intentions. She challenged his validity and risked his careful disguise from being ruined. Yet still, he locked her out of her cell, forcing her to his bed, where she could do nothing but wait for him.

She left him so many questions. Yes, she had burned a score of innocent people to death but why? What had caused her o do so, and how? Did she kill them one by one; in groups; at once? And why chose to stay imprisoned? She continued to use her talents recklessly, as far as he could see, and she enjoyed using them as well. It made little sense to Loki.

He remained until the party ended, and bored, he returned to his room looking forward to gaining his answers. She was nowhere to be found.


	4. Chapter 4

A fire he had not lit crackled in the fireplace. He lifted a vase, the flowers already dead, and pulled their corpses out. There was plenty of water within, although murky, and he walked purposefully towards it and tossed the water on top. It died. He turned to retire to his bed, and as he removed the last item of clothing from his torso, the fire roared to life.

He extended his hand and hissed a command while wrapping his fingers around an invisible rope. He tugged and Zora sprang from the fireplace, surrounded by fire and glowering at him.

"You closed the cells." She said slowly.

"You irritated me."

Fire spread out from her towards Loki, like a ripple in water. He rolled beneath it, toward Zora, and lifted her by her shoulders to the wall. He held her against it and watched her eyes sparkle and crackle with burning hatred, even as they were widened with shock.

"I have fought bigger foes than you." He hissed in her ear. She shuddered,

"Stop it."

"You dare to threaten me? True king of Asgard?" he growled, still in her ear.

"Stop it." She begged, her eyes shut tight.

"Why?"

She held her breath. He leaned in closer,

"Make me."

She began to chuckle. It was low and rumbled deep into his ears. He fought the urge to force her knees apart.

"I don't want you to stop." She whispered, "But I don't deserve for you to go on."

Realisation struck Loki hard. Very hard. Hard enough to strain his trousers.

"Interesting." He mused quietly. "You could turn to dust and escape."

"You could leave me locked in my cage."

"I could."

"Its safe to assume, then, what I want is similar to what you want."

"Yet we remain motionless."

"As we should." She whispered, glowing brighter before his eyes and crumbling into embers. He didn't try to follow her. He leaned on the wall around the space she had occupied and thought of anything he could to lose his erection.

Zora checked the cells for one to be open. Changing to dust so often was leaving her weak and she surrendered to the need to remain in the room with Loki. By the time she reached the fire that now barely glowed, he was at least asleep. The urge to crawl under the sheets behind him made her woozy, and she knew she could not risk spending any longer as fire. She stole a throw from atop his covers and lay in front of the fire, restarting it with a touch of her palm to the wood. The floor was warm and as used to sleeping on hard ground as she was, this was the nicest place she had slept in seven years.


	5. Chapter 5

Zora was roused by the need to adjust her pillows. She was wakened by the realisation she was resting on pillows. She sat upright, beginning to shuffle free and suddenly paused. She looked through the room. Loki was nowhere to be seen; not that that meant he wasn't there. Still, Zora felt comfortably alone and settled back into the soft cushions behind her. She pulled the duvet to her chin and curled up into a ball of total content.

Not long after, the door to the room opened and Loki dropped his Odin-alike cover and grinned knowingly at Zora.

"Interesting." He said, unclasping his armour.

"That I would remain in a comfortable bed?" she challenged him, trying to ignore the hairs rise on her flesh as he freed himself of clothes.

"That you would remain in mine."

"You put me here. I assume I am welcome."

"I'm curious, of all the places in the world you could have gone – no longer bound by that cell – why did you remain here."

She held his gaze steadily.

"I see." His smugness made her embers crackle, "Your talents leave you weakened."

"Do you think so?" she added wryly, unwilling to let Loki know she had weakness at all. "Is that why you undress now? Because you think I am weakened?"

He held her gaze this time.

"Or is it because I remained in your bed? And you would have me."

He walked, naked now, to a table of fruit and took an apple from the pile. He bit into it and chewed, looking at Asgard as it stood before his balcony, considering his next move carefully. Zora made no sound as she approached, even her embers were silent.

"Answer me," she whispered in his ear, so close he almost flinched away but heat radiated from her and he gravitated towards it, "my King."

It was too much for him to deny himself. She was quite clearly mad, most certainly dangerous, while being distractingly gorgeous and offering her self to him. He turned and gripped her throat. She smiled at him, totally relaxed, and said,

"You've faced bigger foes than me, Loki."

He relaxed his grip, trailing his hand down her neck, to her breast where he left it and place his free hand on her waist. She pressed her lips gently to his as he pulled her to him, every muscle of his frame tense. He allowed her to feel his shape for a time, just pressing her mouth to his, distracted as his hands worked over her skin, mapping her shape.

At last he moved his lips over hers, dipping his tongue gently between her lips, following her tongue as it invited him in. A noise disturbed them: the door. She turned completely to ash and retreated to the fire, igniting it as she landed. By the time someone entered the door Loki was guised as a chamber maid and made his way out of the door. The soldier looked perplexed as she passed, and walked cautiously around the room to ensure no one was hiding. The door was shut and the guard stood before it for some time, preventing Loki from entering easily. He would have to take a hidden path inside, a long, hidden path. He cursed the interruption and stormed on his way.


	6. Chapter 6

Zora freed herself from the fire, and crouched before it. She looked around the room quietly for Loki and was disappointed to find he was not there. She took the liberty of borrowing a shirt from his chest of drawers and its length comfortably covered her. When she was finished pulling it on, a blade rested on her shoulder.

"Who are you; who dares to rifle though the Olfather's possessions?"

Zora recognised the soldier-tone in his voice. She considered becoming ash and heading for fire once more but she would grow weak again, and Loki was noticing. She dropped to the floor as though struck with a sudden faint, and swept her leg around at his legs. He was a soldier; not useless. He jumped and jabbed his sword down to her chest but she rolled aside and scrambled to her feet to run across the room. The door was still closed, and she had no way of knowing what lay beyond, so she turned to the Asgardian soldier and faced her fate.

Loki listened carefully to the tunnels and walkways as he moved through them, continuing his guise until he was mere steps away from the room. A bright light poured from the cracks of the door's outline. Loki's eyes shied away from its strength and he held up a hand in defence against them. He opened the door cautiously, surprised and horrified by what he saw.

Zora clung onto the Asgardian soldier, her arms bleeding, his faded green shirt stained with blood, the sword used to create those wounds still in the man's hand as Zora's arms wrapped around him, across his chest and a hand on his face. She watched with side eyes, dancing with flickers of fire through her entire eyes, her mouth a plain line as she watched. He was blackening before them, embers ate away at his armour and steam rose above him. The heat from Zora made Loki's view waver, but he forced himself to watch. She was like a long, miniature sun, flames spinning around her in a whirl.

She abruptly let go, and the form that had once been alive crumbled forward. She looked at it for a long time before putting a hand to her face. Loki saw he visibly tremble as she reached out her hand, as if to touch what remained of the corpse, and lower herself to one knee.

"Zora," Loki began and she recoiled in fright. Her eyes were black when they looked at him, tears barely made it over her cheeks before evaporating. She trembled as though experiencing extreme cold; something he was sure, with her capabilities, she could not.

"Open the cell." She insisted quietly, and Loki couldn't deny her. He wanted to go to her side, pick her up from the ground and carry her away; hold her; make her feel safe. But he thought of the way she held the soldier, and of the way she had held Loki earlier, and the similarities were terrifying. Loki conjured an image of a maid again,

"She will take you to an open cell and close it after you." He said solemnly. Zora moved quickly away and the maid kept pace. Loki didn't watch Zora go, but crouched next to the ashes she had made. Who was Solveig-Zora? What was she? Was she a harnessable tool Loki could use to his advantage? Or was she a ticking timebomb that's only outcome was disaster?

He knew of only one man who might shed light on the answers.


	7. Chapter 7

"Loki, loki, loki." Odin mused, leaning forward in his chains. He was held on a high pedestal, deep within a hidden cave amidst some of the darkest beings known to Asgard. The pedestal was so high that the bottom could not be seen, the shadows and distance were too great. He still wore his finery, now faded but still strong. Loki stood at the opening of the cave, and projected an image of his self to Odin so they wouldn't have to shout over the distance.

"Hello Odin."

"Is my empire yet in ruins?"

"As if I would share such knowledge."

"Then why do you come here?"

"Prisoners escaped, the day your wife died."

"And stole what was never theirs to take –"

"I'm not finished, save your strength old man."

Odin smiled up at Loki with hate. Loki continued,

"Including one named Zora-Solveig."

Odin's face dropped and the image of Loki crouched before him. Loki continued,

"What did you fail to include in your journals about her, old man?"

"What has happened to my Realm, Loki."

"Answer me."

"What has happed to my Asgard!?"

"You mean _my_ Asgard, you pathetic old fool." Loki hissed. "Now tell me about the girl."

"Our enemies, before the Dark Elves, before the Frost Giants, were not as powerful as Asgard. They dared not challenge us before they had substantial forces with which to fight. They began to... create. They bred their own kind with... dragons, and basilisks, griffons and all kinds of frightful creature. It was an abomination-"

"Rather like me then."

"- it was uncontrollable. By the time we discovered those... souls, there was no battle to be fought; we had peace. But those things did not know that. Their creators locked them away for another day, when another battle would need fought."

"You moved to wipe them out."

"Of course I did. It was only a matter of time before their captivity was challenged and they sought their vengeance on all the Realms. You've seen what she can do; that amount of power is too great to be stored in one vessel: that's too much to ask of one person."

"One young girl you mean."

"Regardless of age or the package itself, she is truly dangerous."

"If you intended to wipe them all out, why save her? Why imprison her?"

"I could not kill her."

"Pathetic."

"Try it. Take a knife to her heart, her throat. Try to kill her."

"She will no doubt turn to ash around my weapon."

"Precisely. She understood her crimes and did not run. She chose to pay in time because she physically could not give her life."

"But I have witness blade cut her skin."

"As have I. There are creature who, in the pursuit of survival, will lose a part of their own bodies to leave behind so that they can escape: it's a mechanism of their bodies, not a choice."

"Why did she kill her enemies for you?"

Odin paused for a moment, "There were many strange gifts born into those people. They were just as impervious to our attacks as she is to death. I overheard someone command her to her sister. But this point I saw what she was. Friga was with me – we needed powers like yours – and she helped me do what I did next. The sisters came together, fire and earth combined into a weapon so graceful and powerful I feared we would lose," Odin chuckled, "to children." He grew sombre again.

"You manipulated her." Loki clarified.

"I killed her sister with Friga's help, and with Friga's power she made the girl into a bomb. She should have died. We hid well but I lost many of my men. The creatures left standing were eventually killed and I was sure the destruction she caused was self-destructive. Until a skeletal, burned figure found us. I tried to kill her, she dispersed and every time I tried and failed she sank lower to the ground in surrender."

"So you cuffed her and brought her to Asgard."

"She wiped out her own people and several Asgardians. I wouldn't risk the same destruction again."

"But you created it."

"And I took control of it."

"She let you imprison her; that's hardly control."

"It was control enough. What has she done to Asgard?"

Loki smirked and his image vanished. Odin cried out Loki's name in outrage and it echoed throughout the cave, waking the damned inside. Loki left as their moans vibrated along the walls.


	8. Chapter 8

Zora curled up with her back against the see-through cell wall, and Loki paused before her to see if she would move. Her hair was bunched on the ground, embers glowing like a dying camp fire. She still wore his shirt, and the skin he could see was sore, swollen, red and crispy. He leaned against the wall too, exactly where she lay, and rested there. He dozed, the cells were frequented so seldom, and turned to find Zora's face next to his own. She looked into his eyes, her shoulder resting on the material between them.

"Tell me," he asked, "About the deaths you caused."

"Why do you wish to know?"

"I am a King, even before I took my place in Asgard I was always a king in my own right. To me, killing is part of that title. I kill to give power to my title, to maintain it. Why did you?"

She leaned her temple on the wall and looked ahead, away from him. "I was angry." She whispered, "and in pain. My sister had been killed in front of me and I was filled with a rage deeper than any emotion I knew. I let it go."

"Interesting."

"Why is it interesting now? It's been weeks, Loki, since you closed this door on me."

"So you were thinking about me."

"Loki, why are you here?"

"I'm bored: I've spent the last several days pretending to be my father, making menial decisions and keeping up appearances."

"Why not organise it so that he appears to give you the throne."

"Asgard thinks I am dead."

"So create a new persona."

"They expect Thor on the throne."

"Where is he?"

"Elsewhere. I don't need him hearing word of a new King."

"Does he frighten you?"

"No. I have tricked him so often defeating him would be too easy."

"You don't want to kill him."

"Not if I can help it. He is a nuisance if ever there was one."

"He is your brother."

"No." Loki stood to leave and Zora stood too.

"I had a sister."

He paused. Turned. Waited.

"Sort of. We were all born of different things. We made out own families. Her name was SKAÐI."

"Where is she now?"

"She's dead."

"How did she die?"

Loki moved to the glass to stand directly in front of Zora. Embers danced furiously in her hair and eyes. "Someone ripped out her heart."

Loki toyed with the idea of bringing her to Odin, but he didn't want to kill the Olfather; the punishment he suffered now suited him well enough.

"I'm sorry for your loss."

The embers relaxed. "Is that what you came for?"

"I don't know why I came." He admitted before taking his leave. He didn't see her place her hand on the wall between them, or lean her forehead on it and sigh,

"Because you need company."


	9. Chapter 9

As she so often did in her dreams, Zora lifted the glass orb over the heart she knew belonged to her sister, and placed it into her hands. She held it before her eyes and felt the fire in her calm, ground itself. Then she ate it; it tasted soft; like cream-soaked cake sponge. It burned her insides pleasantly and she breathed out white smoke like a dragon. The glass orb cracked where she had replaced it, almost shattering and, as always, she pushed it with a finger to the floor. The shards scattered, impossibly far, impossibly so many of them through the air. She waited to feel them tear at her skin as they always did but suddenly they were frozen.

She heard Loki say her name and as she turned, the glass began to move again, in slow motion, on its original, destructive path. He looked as though he hadn't seen her, but was searching for her in the blackness around them. He would have been killed.

"No," she gasped, and fire flew from her to belt the glass and stop him being hurt. Shards melted onto her skin and she fell to her knees. She looked up for Loki but he was not there. She looked behind her and for the first time, the heart was returned to the glass globe, unscathed.

Her sister appeared, brown haired and sharp-featured, green eyes like jewels, skin dark and inviting. She took the heart, pressed it to her chest in the vein hope of returning it to its origins until it burst. Then she stood like an emaciated, humanoid charcoal form. Zora turned away and woke up.

Loki sat on the floor before her. He looked dreadful. His eyes were sunken, his cheeks drawn, his hair was matted, and his clothes dishevelled. His eyes were shut and Zora inched closer to him from where she lay on the floor, around him in a crouch and she sat cross-legged behind him. She slipped her fingers against his scalp, under his hair, and let them warm him. He sagged under the touch and almost fell. She moved to sit before him and replace her fingers against his skull. She leaned her head on his and let the heat form a comfortable channel between them. He rested his weight on her and she waited.

"I tire of being alone." He confessed.

"Go to bed Loki." She whispered. "Sleep."

"Sleep with me." He demanded, somehow still able to command in such a fragile state.

"Yes." She replied. His eyes remained closed and he smiled. He moved from the ground, took her hand in his and lead her through the silence of the halls. She kept her hands warm and as they closed the secret door to his room behind them, he pulled her hand around his front. He pulled her flat against his back and she positively radiated heat. She tried to move away but he held on. She whispered in his ear,

"Take me to bed Loki."

"I am without energy."

"I'll find you some." She promised as he released his grip and allowed her to move to the bed. He watched as she undressed, folded the shirt neatly away and slid one knee onto the mattress. She turned to him, watching him. She saw the man from her fantasies atop the weakness surrounding him. He saw comfort and warmth; skin he needed to touch. He moved towards her and moved to remove his clothes. Exhaustion got the better of him.

"Do not leave until I tell you to." he ordered and she smiled a lopsided smile of disobedience at him; she would stay as long as she anted to and he was lucky her ideas lined up with his. He slunk under the covers and pulled her to him, positioning the curve of her buttocks at his hips and burying his face in her hair. The crackling was loud there but calming.

She slept as soundly as he did.

Having woken, feeling more rested than he had in a long time, Loki moved through the room, securing it from appearing used or sounding so. This took time and he waited for it to wake Zora. She lay perfectly still, as he had left her, and he wanted her to wake up. Naked, he slipped back beneath the sheets, and started at her shoulder. His kisses and pinches with his teeth roused her from slumber and as he worked his way over her neck, to her ear, her nipples hardened and her skin crawled with anticipation. As his breathing filled her ear and he sucked on her earlobe, slowly, a moan escaped her. Loki's mouth met hers as she twisted beneath him, lying flat on her back and bending her knees around him. His erection grew as he took her breasts in his hands, and gently worked his way around them; the pleasure in filling his palm, the intense joy at the softness of her skin, the sounds he drew from her with light traces over the nipples with his thumbs.

Her hand drew down his side, over his hipbone and she almost reached his cock, but her moved back, to take her nipple in his mouth. She arched up to him, and the heat from between her legs was so close to his erection that he could-

He moved down still, drawing his tongue deep into her.

"Thats," she shuddered,

"Yes?" he encouraged her to continue before pressing the tip of his tongue to her clit.

"New."

He chuckled and the sound rolled pleasure into Zora as he did. He slid his tongue deeper once again and stroked the muscles inside her with harsh strokes, while clutching her thighs for support. He felt those muscles shuddering, on the cusp of clenching around his tongue so he moved away, trailing wet kisses along the inside of her thigh. He looked at her, from the dark triangle between her legs, over the soft skin of her stomach, around her full breasts, over the beads of sweat on her chest to her eyes that literally smouldered: ghosts of orange passed through her eyes as they closed, her head dipping back, her breasts rising under the arch of her back as she commanded,

"Take me."

He pulled her hips closer to him, slowly at first until he found her opening over the tip of his cock and then he pulled her harshly towards him as he thrust his hips force. She sank further into the bed, her arms stretching outwards over the sheets. He thrust against her again, her breasts moving up and back into place enticingly. He slid his hands around her waist, and brought her up from the sheets to be supported only by him. She spread her legs and he felt himself move deeper inside her. She held his gaze as she did and he moaned with approval. He leaned back to better balance himself and pulsed his hips into her. She gripped his shoulders and threw her head back, bucking her hips in time with his to enhance each move he made.

Loki was in a perfect position but couldn't remain so, carrying both their weight was a strain his back could not yet take. He conjured a second self, and her eyes rolled lustfully back to him inquisitively.

"Don't mind me." the copy breathed harshly in her ear. She leaned against him and the strain eased from Loki's spine. She slid her arms around her copy's neck, lifting her breasts picturesquely. He had his copy cup them and she turned her face into him. Loki increased his pace, watching as his copy's lips found hers and she moaned into him. He watched, fascinated by the star contrast of his own hair next to hers, by the paleness of them both; like ghosts. Her hand reached for Loki and bit into his muscle as her orgasm forced cries from her diaphragm, as it clamped harshly to his cock and pulled him deeper into her core and to his own climax.

They remained for several seconds, panting, trembling terribly, and feeling the cold air attack the sweat covering them both. Loki's copy vanished and they both tipped onto the bed.


	10. Chapter 10

Loki leaned against the wall with his arms folded - only half dressed - and watched Zora sleep. She lay on her back, the sheets covering most of her legs as they crossed delicately at the knees. The rest of her form was exposed, one hand over her chest, the other arm above her head. Her hair barely smouldered, her face was almost serene, and Loki could now see, as the sun fell on her skin from his balcony, the faint scars that covered her body.

Head to toe her skin was mottled with the kind of scars left by burns. In the dimness of the night and of the confines around them, especially the harsh artificial light in her cell, it was hard to notice them at all, but the sun seemed to bring them forth. Loki thought of what Odin had said about her,

'..._I was sure the destruction she caused was self-destructive. Until a skeletal, burned figure found us_...'

The thought of Zora charred as Odin described chilled Loki. The smugness he felt seeing such a powerful, beautiful creature in his bed fell away and anger took its place. Loose objects and furniture in the room began to tremble as his will fed from that anger. He heard footsteps approach the door. He quickly calmed, setting the rage aside for later, and disguised his self as Odin. An advisor entered, none the wiser to the form sleeping in what appeared to him, a made bed.

Zora woke in Loki's bed, and was disappointed he was not still there with her. Flashes of Loki staring devilishly up at her from between her legs filled her thoughts and she writhed happily. She took another shirt from his drawer and realised she was no longer captive; Odin no longer ensured she was provided for with basic necessities like clothes; she was free to go out herself.

It was no easy feat – Zora had to scale some of the palace from the outside, dodge soldiers from the inside and collect the discarded shirt once or twice after being forced to flee into fire to remain unnoticed. She was free though; totally and utterly free.

Stealing money was far too easy a task – people's pockets were full of coin and a display of fire in the distance was an easy distraction for Zora to make. With the stolen coins Zora bought a bag to carry the clothes she bought in. She was drawn to green but recognised this had more to do with Loki than her own preferences. She thought about red but if she turned to ash in a hurry it would be easy to see the discarded garments on the ground. The castle was predominantly gold, so she chose yellows and oranges.

Still in Loki's shirt and a new cloak on top, the day was drawing to its end. She thought about returning to Loki, but the city was so beautiful, and she had patiently waited for the episode with the Dark Elves to be over close to the palace. She was free now; she had time to wonder.

The sky was black and crowded with glittering stars. Zora stood in an open space, far from civilisation by foot and amused herself with an airborne fire display. She drew Asgard's enemies to her; they had shared the hall of cells with her.

"Well, well, well." A reptilian bear sighed, approaching Zora slowly. Creatures like him followed, all wearing similar uniforms, similarly dulled with time and battle. The plates on their chests were black, silver chainmail beneath that hung like a skirt over their brown leather-clad legs. Their feet were toughened and bloodied.

"So they didn't manage to round you up, did they?"

"You're voice isn't as pretty as I imagined." He told her.

"Glad to disappoint. Is there a good reason for you interrupting me?"

"It's lonely out here." He grinned, earning a series of chuckles from his friends.

"Is everyone so lonely?" she muttered to herself, rolling her fingers outstretched while raising her arm gracefully to one side. Fire spilled forth and the invisible creature that had been inching towards her shrieked as her flames consumed her. The reptilian bear's smirk dropped.

Another of his friends barked an insult before charging towards her. She didn't want to ruin her new cloak and so avoided bursting into flames. She punched the air and a quarter-circle of fire flew forth, fusing his armour to his skin.

He fell to the floor screaming, wriggling under the heat that was now in his chest plate. Two more were already coming towards her and she waved her arms, like legs swimming side ways in water, creating a pulsing beam of fire in front of her. She turned as she did, crouching low as she moved, cutting down her enemies.

She had used a lot of energy, and it had been a long time since she had used her abilities combatively. She leaned on her hands and one knee, on the ground, taking deep breaths in attempt to steady the dizziness before her eyes. Gold figures came towards her, long gold weapons in their hands.

Pain erupted to one side of her jaw and her shoulder and the opposite side of her head soon followed with more outbursts of pain. She had been struck and landed on the ground hard. A blade pierced her skin, above her heart and she dispersed quickly, appearing again standing where she had lay, as a naked figure of fire.


	11. Chapter 11

Loki waited in a chair for Zora's arrival. He had checked the cells and ensured they were all closed so that when she did return she would return to him directly. The night began to lighten into day.

The main door was open and as he stood he almost forgot to guise himself as Odin – almost. A member of the guard jogged over to him, bowed, and said,

"Trouble sir, out with the main city. It's the fire creature sir."

"I won't be a moment, wait for me outside." He replied calmly, imitating Odin perfectly. Once the door was shut the guise was gone and Loki clutched the back of the chair, leaning on it and trying not to hyperventilate. Panic gripped his throat and anger clawed its way through him – anger at Zora for leaving without him and getting into trouble, and anger at whoever might have hurt her.

The sky was still dark, but in less than an hour, it would be daylight. In the distance Loki watched a flash of light erupt out in a circle and disperse as a ripple does in water. Three men fell when it did. As Loki drew nearer he saw the ruins of over a dozen shoulders on the ground, steaming still. The ground was black and layered in soot, surrounded by a half-circle of Asgardian soldiers. Loki as Odin ignored anyone who tried to speak with him. He walked around the circle, looking for any point Zora could see him from.

She kneeled on the ground, steam pouring up from her as she leaned back on her knees, her face to the sky. She was blackened and charred also, but her chest yet took in breath. Two soldiers moved in and Loki wasn't fast enough to order them not to. She looked like she might be sigh for a second as she suddenly blazed, then it dispersed from her with a great clap. Loki stood where the flames and heat died completely away. It still wasn't far enough to obscure the pained look on Zora's face. He heard her roar in agony.

Her eyes opened slightly and widened a little as she recognised him. She knew it couldn't be Odin; it had to be Loki. She closed her eyes and mouthed,

'Help.'

Loki moved forward, was fast enough to order others back and stepped over several bodies before reaching her. He told her,

"Come with me."

In his own voice as his Odin-impression melted away from him. Her eyes rolled between him and to the crowd of Guards.

"They can't see us." He promised. She struggled to lift her knees, and Loki kept a close eye on the guards. It was costing him energy to project what they saw, and reveal himself to Zora. She stood, emaciated and black, bald and embers dancing through holes in her body and in her eyes. They walked away and he made it seem to them all that Odin drew a knife across her neck and she crumbled away.

The Soldiers cheered in the distance, and he stopped to carry through the motions of Odin thanking them for their congratulations, and taking his leave alone.

Zora stood, staring at the ground, looking like the living dead. All anger fled from him then and he reached out to touch her. She clenched her eyes shut against the pain.

"Can't." Was all she managed to hiss. It was a long, exhausting journey to the safety of his room.


End file.
